Gerry Rozek said she decided to put one outside her Garfield Street home in November after seeing a story about the phenomenon on the CBS News show “60 Minutes.”

The structure — which looks like a large bird house, about 10 inches off the ground — contains 20 to 30 books and functions like a self-service library. Anyone is welcome to help themselves to what’s inside.

Many people who use it add books as they borrow others, so the library is largely self-sustaining.

Rozek used her own books to get things started, after having the little library built at the edge of her front yard.

“I had my contractor put it together from the leftovers from the house remodel,” Rozek said, about the little building. “As a retired librarian, it just struck me as an awesome way to get books out there.”

The first Little Free Library was built in 2009 in Wisconsin, according to
www.littlefreelibrary.org. Since then, the idea has spread rapidly as a way to promote literacy and community connections, and now they can be found around the world.

Rozek, who lives much of the year near Seattle, is the official “steward” of the library. She said her family bought the Garfield Street home in 2010. She has a daughter who lives year-round in Carlsbad and who cares for the library when she’s away.

“This one’s in kind of an ideal setting with the beach and the park close by,” said her daughter, Megan Rozek, 25, a college student and part-time employee of a Carlsbad veterinarian’s office.

She said she enjoys being the caretaker of the little library.

“I was always into books.” she said. “I spent a lot of time at the library.”

The box is filled with a variety of titles, Megan Rozek said, but many are “classic beach reads.”

“I’ve noticed a lot of the murder mysteries have been going ... and the memoirs,” she said.

When the library runs low, the Rozeks restock with volumes from their own shelves or from thrift shops, garage sales and other inexpensive sources.

So far no one has vandalized the little library or its contents, the Rozeks said, and no one seems to have taken more than their share of the books.

The Rozeks place stickers that state “Always a gift, never for sale” on the books to discourage anyone who might try to turn them in for cash at a used-book store.

Rozek said that one day when she was staying at the Carlsbad house, she heard a “throbbing, loud car” stop at the box of books. She looked outside to see what was happening.

“A girl ran out, exchanged some books, and hopped back into the car,” Rozek said. “It’s been a very interesting thing.”

A wealth of information about Little Free Libraries, including construction plans and kits, is available at
www.littlefreelibrary.org. The website also features a map that shows where branches are throughout the world.

The map shows six Little Free Libraries in San Diego County, including two in North County — the one set up by the Rozeks in Carlsbad, and one in Escondido.

“I was amazed that I was the first one in the area,” Gerry Rozek said. “I’d love to see more pop up.”